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Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes Paperback – December 31, 2013

4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 1,428 ratings

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The New York Times bestselling guide to thinking like literature's greatest detective. "Steven Pinker meets Sir Arthur Conan Doyle" (Boston Globe), by the author of The Confidence Game

No fictional character is more renowned for his powers of thought and observation than Sherlock Holmes. But is his extraordinary intellect merely a gift of fiction, or can we learn to cultivate these abilities ourselves, to improve our lives at work and at home?

We can, says psychologist and journalist Maria Konnikova, and in Mastermind she shows us how. Beginning with the “brain attic”—Holmes’s metaphor for how we store information and organize knowledge—Konnikova unpacks the mental strategies that lead to clearer thinking and deeper insights. Drawing on twenty-first-century neuroscience and psychology, Mastermind explores Holmes’s unique methods of ever-present mindfulness, astute observation, and logical deduction. In doing so, it shows how each of us, with some self-awareness and a little practice, can employ these same methods to sharpen our perceptions, solve difficult problems, and enhance our creative powers. For Holmes aficionados and casual readers alike, Konnikova reveals how the world’s most keen-eyed detective can serve as an unparalleled guide to upgrading the mind.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Steven Pinker meets Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in this entertaining, insightful look at how the fictional London crime-solver used sophisticated mental strategies to solve complex problems of logic and deduction…  practical and enjoyable.”
Boston Globe

“An entertaining blend of Holmesiana and modern-day neuroscience.”
New York Times
 
“A clearly written guide to the mysteries of logical deduction.”
Dallas Morning News
 
“The book is part literary analysis and part self-help guide, teaching readers how to sharpen the ways they observe the world, store and retrieve memories, and make decisions.”
Scientific American
 
Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes is fascinating from cover to cover — highly recommended.”
—Brain Pickings
 
“Your favorite mental short-cuts and slip-ups are all here. But Ms. Konnikova finds an ingenious delivery system. Holmes and Watson, she shows, respectively personify our rational and intuitive modes of thought. In story after story, taking the time to think carefully allows Holmes to school his slack-jawed sidekick.”
The Wall Street Journal
 
“The book is part literary analysis and part self-help guide, teaching readers how to sharpen the ways they observe the world, store and retrieve memories, and make decisions.”
Scientific American
 
“The fast-paced, high-tech world we inhabit may be more complex than Sherlock Holmes’s Baker Street, but we can still leverage the mental strategies of the renowned reasoner…Forcing the mind to observe, imagine and deduce can make the brain more precise—important for solving cases or simply staying sharp as we age.”
Psychology Today
 
“Devotees of Arthur Conan Doyle’s conundrum-cracker will be thrilled by this portmanteau of strategies for sharpening cognitive ability... A few hours in Konnikova’s company and, along with Holmes, you might intone, ‘give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis, and I am in my own proper atmosphere’ (
The Sign of Four, 1890).”
Nature
 
“Have you ever thought about how your mind organizes information? Have you ever wished you could access that data more quickly? Could recollect it easier? Or have you simply wanted to think more clearly at key moments?... This book is an absolute must if you're in the market for training yourself to think more like Sherlock Holmes.”
—SheKnows.com
 
“A bright and entertaining how-to aimed at helping readers engage in the awareness described by psychologists from William James to Ellen Langer.”
Kirkus Reviews
 
“Not for Baker Street Irregulars alone, this fascinating look at how the mind works—replete with real-life case studies and engaging thought experiments—will be an eye-opening education for many.” —
Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
 
“A delightful tour of the science of memory, creativity, and reasoning, illustrated with the help of history’s most famous reasoner, Sherlock Holmes himself. Maria Konnikova is an engaging and insightful guide to this fascinating material, which will help you master your own mind.”
—Steven Pinker, Harvard College Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and author of
How the Mind Works and The Stuff of Thought
 
“Far from elementary, Maria Konnikova’s new book is a challenging and insightful study of the human mind, illustrated with cases from the career of Sherlock Holmes. Holmes himself would have been proud to author this fine work!”
—Leslie S. Klinger,
New York Times-best-selling author/editor of The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes
 
“Maria Konnikova’s bright and brilliant new book is nothing less than a primer on how be awake, a manual on how to work ourselves free of our unconscious biases, our habitual distractions, and the muddle of our everyday minds. Holmes fan or not, the reader will find
Mastermind to be bracing, fascinating, and above all — and most important — hopeful.”
—Daniel Smith, author of
Monkey Mind
 
“Since my earliest days as a reader I dreamt of being more like Sherlock Holmes and failed miserably whenever I tried. Needless to say, MASTERMIND is the book I didn't realize I was waiting for. Maria Konnikova has crafted a surprising and ingenious book that lets us all come closer to Holmes's genius, giving a gift to all readers interested in Conan Doyle, mysteries and scientific thinking as well as those who simply want to be more self-aware about the inner workings of our minds.”
—Matthew Pearl, 
New York Times-bestselling author of The Dante Club
 
“‘You know my methods,’ Sherlock Holmes once said to Dr. Watson. ‘Apply them!’ Science writer Maria Konnikova has made those instructions the inspiration for what turns out to be a delightfully intelligent book. Using Holmes and Watson as both muse and metaphor, she shows us some of modern psychology’s most important lessons for using our minds well. I probably won’t be able to solve murders after having read
Mastermind, but I will have much to reflect on.”
—Carl Zimmer, author of
Soul Made Flesh and Parasite Rex

About the Author

Maria Konnikova is the author of Mastermind and The Confidence Game. She is a regular contributing writer for The New Yorker, and has written for the Atlantic, the New York Times, Slate, the New Republic, the Paris Review, the Wall Street Journal, Salon, the Boston Globe,  the Scientific American MIND, WIRED, and Smithsonian. Maria graduated  from Harvard University and received her Ph.D. in Psychology from Columbia University.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ 014312434X
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Books; Illustrated edition (December 31, 2013)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 288 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780143124344
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0143124344
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.76 x 8.43 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 1,428 ratings

About the author

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Maria Konnikova
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Maria Konnikova is the author, most recently, of The Biggest Bluff, a New York Times bestseller, one of the Times’ 100 Notable Books of 2020, and a finalist for the Telegraph Best Sports Writing Awards for 2021. Her previous books are the bestsellers The Confidence Game, winner of the 2016 Robert P. Balles Prize in Critical Thinking, and Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes, an Anthony and Agatha Award finalist. Maria is a regularly contributing writer for The New Yorker whose writing has won numerous awards, including the 2019 Excellence in Science Journalism Award from the Society of Personality and Social Psychology. While researching The Biggest Bluff, Maria became an international poker champion and the winner of over $300,000 in tournament earnings—and inadvertently turned into a professional poker player. Maria’s writing has been featured in Best American Science and Nature Writing and has been translated into over twenty languages. Maria also hosts the podcast The Grift from Panoply Media, a show that explores con artists and the lives they ruin. Her podcasting work earned her a National Magazine Award nomination in 2019. She graduated from Harvard University and received her PhD in psychology from Columbia University.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
1,428 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book easy to read and mentally stimulating. They appreciate the author's insights into how the mind works and how current research in cognitive psychology is explained. Readers praise the simple, clear presentation of information and illustrations using Conan Doyle's famous stories. However, some feel the book is repetitive and boring, with banalities piled on.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

164 customers mention "Readability"137 positive27 negative

Customers find the book easy to read and mentally stimulating. They describe it as a real gem that presents new perspectives. Readers mention it's understandable, enjoyable, and a life changer. The stories are beautifully written with psychological information.

"...to explain the psychology of self improvement, which makes for fantastic reading...." Read more

"...The book is written beautifully, and it's fun to read, with psychological information presented in a lively, palatable way; one needn't be an expert..." Read more

"...her writing style is lively and keeps the interest, so that what *could* be a dry psychology lesson is instead a compelling discussion on the..." Read more

"...I found these efforts to be worthwhile for the most part (4 stars)...." Read more

129 customers mention "Insight"116 positive13 negative

Customers find the book helpful in understanding how the mind works and basic psychology. They appreciate its interesting approach and current research in cognitive psychology. The book provides a comprehensive overview of the brain and helps readers see and understand themselves better.

"...and distills it all into a readable and comprehensive overview of the brain. Where the other books fall short, this book excels...." Read more

"...book is written beautifully, and it's fun to read, with psychological information presented in a lively, palatable way; one needn't be an expert on..." Read more

"...This volume is organized in four detailed parts: The first part (Understanding yourself) covers the basics of the scientific method of the mind and..." Read more

"...the deductive prowess of Sherlock Holmes and explaining current research in cognitive psychology, but the switch between the two is sometimes jarring..." Read more

9 customers mention "Author's knowledge"9 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the author's knowledge. They say she has a good understanding of science and integrates it into life in general. The author did a good job collecting and researching on several hot topics. Overall, readers find the book a nice blend of science and classic literature.

"...To be fair, the author did a good job collecting and researching on several hot areas of psychology: 1)..." Read more

"...Hard feat to pull off, but the author did it magnificently." Read more

"...As a science writer, she has successfully communicated and explained important theories and findings of contemporary psychologists and..." Read more

"...it's well-written and the author really hit home with it." Read more

7 customers mention "Ease of use"7 positive0 negative

Customers find the book simple and easy to understand. They appreciate the author's illustrations using Conan Doyle's famous Sherlock Holmes stories.

"...Also, I found Konnikova's style easy enough to follow; however, I would not say that I was a huge fan of it: it comes across as patronizing at times..." Read more

"Mindfulness... Simple enough concept that means so much to us and can be so crucial at times...." Read more

"...I think the author does a good job in illustrating these processes by using Conan Doyle’s famous duo...." Read more

"...It's simple. It's Elementary! 5 stars." Read more

13 customers mention "Repetition"0 positive13 negative

Customers find the book repetitive and boring. They say it's dense, rambling, and dull. The subject matter seems dry and uninteresting to them.

"...Alas, that is all there is! Fairly repetitive and written at the depth of an overly-long New Yorker article, it just never delivered...." Read more

"...The book was dense, rambling, repetitive and could have been handled much more effectively in a few bullet points." Read more

"...It was enjoyable enough but not informative." Read more

"...that it could be a little more brief/concise...it tended to get a little dry with theory at the expense of "how to"...still contained enough solid..." Read more

Bad packaging spoiled a good read
3 out of 5 stars
Bad packaging spoiled a good read
Book seems good so far. But was send in packaging that allows water leakage. It takes away some of the joy from the reading when you have pages with water stains on a brand new book. Please use waterproof packaging or wrap your book in a plastic bag or similar before shipping.
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2013
    I have been trying to improve myself using psychology books for quite some time. Almost invariably, every psychology book I read will give me part of the solution, but not all of it. They will focus on one portion of the brains function and ignore all the rest. Books like The Power of Habit, The Willpower Instinct, and Flow, try to teach the reader about the brain, but only from one viewpoint. Each book answers questions, but it's like seeing only part of a painting. You don't know enough to really understand.

    Mastermind combines the knowledge from psychological breakthroughs and the books mentioned above (aside from the Willpower Instinct, instead Daniel Pink's Drive is referenced) and distills it all into a readable and comprehensive overview of the brain. Where the other books fall short, this book excels. By referencing all of these books, it is capable of giving "the whole picture" of the brain. There is never a feeling of only seeing part of the picture, it covers EVERYTHING.

    But not only does the book cover all knowledge of the brain, but it explains it in relation to Western Society's favorite archetypal hero, Sherlock Holmes. Mastermind uses the Sherlock Holmes abilities as a medium to explain the psychology of self improvement, which makes for fantastic reading.

    In summary: the book covers all of modern knowledge about using the brain to it's utmost potential, and explains it using Sherlock Holmes as a medium. The book is fantastic. I will be reading it again and again for years to come.
    13 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2013
    A brilliant topic, using one of literature's most famous characters as a springboard toward exploring how the mind works: Konnikova makes the point that studying how Sherlock Holmes solved his cases is more about noting that he was a man of intensely logical observation, not unfathomably magical powers; we're reminded that the character is human, after all. So we, too, can enrich our lives and world by becoming more intuitive and deductive, both. Most engaging and persuasive is the argument that there's no such thing as "multi-tasking": Short-lived focus on many things sequentially isn't the same as harnessing keener powers of presence and mindfulness.

    The book is written beautifully, and it's fun to read, with psychological information presented in a lively, palatable way; one needn't be an expert on the detective to enjoy hearing how our "brain attics" act as repositories out of which we all build the narrative threads of our lives. The caution that there's no easy path to true creative depths helps keep us honest as we explore how to free ourselves from our usual hazy thinking, which directly determines how rich and exciting our days end up. The reader emerges wanting to re-read all of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's work--a bonus; there's also an invigorating sense by the end that we are capable of tackling and refining what we store in our minds, the better to use it in ways that might astonish us.
    9 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2021
    As a retired Police Officer who also worked as a Detective, I have always been interested in Sir Arthur Conon Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes and other detective stories. Even though I am well into my senior years I continue to be a voracious reader all kinds of books.

    When I saw this 273 page soft cover book (Mastermind: How to think like Sherlock Holmes by Maria Konnikova) on Amazon I just had to purchase it. One of the many things we learned as police officers and detectives was the importance of developing our observation skills. As the old saying goes “the devil is always in the details.”

    This excellent book explores the various crime cases and the reasons behind Sherlock Holmes success in solving them as one of the world’s smartest and most successful detectives.

    This volume is organized in four detailed parts: The first part (Understanding yourself) covers the basics of the scientific method of the mind and the brain attic: what is it and what’s in there? The second part (From observation to imagination) explores stocking the brain attic: the power of observation, and exploring the brain attic: the value of creativity and imagination. Part three (The art of deduction) deals with navigating the brain attic: deduction from facts, maintaining the brain attic: education never stops. The final part (The science and art of self-knowledge) focuses on the dynamic attic: putting it all together and we’re only human.

    There is no question that to be a good detective one has to learn how to observe, think, reason and evaluate every detail possible when investigating a crime scene. Indeed, as I am sure Holmes would point out, one must not ignore even the most mundane or seemingly irrelevant detail in order to solve the crime puzzle. First off, you should know that this is not always an easy to read book and the techniques and principles must be studied in order to become anywhere near a Sherlock Holmes kind of observer; nevertheless, I found this book to be an interesting and informative read.

    If you are a fan of Sherlock Holmes and detective work this is a book you should check out.
    Rating: 4 Stars. Joseph J. Truncale (Author: Tactical Principles of the most effective Combative Systems).
    11 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Geoff
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great Analytical Work
    Reviewed in Canada on July 28, 2024
    This was a very good read about observation and having a deductive mindset (Holmes) vs a reactive mindset (Watson). I was quite impressed with how the author laid out the distinction, focusing on the fictional character Sherlock Holmes and how that character's mindset is extremely analytical built from the constant practice and refinement of being observant.

    The author does a good job comparing Holmes' way of assessing situations compared to that of his partner Watson, who is more reactive and will quickly assess what he views at a scene, thinking instantly what the result must be and often overlooking essential items. The author also touches on the dangers of over-confidence in one's own abilities, often derived from a string of successes in correctly deducing conclusions.

    There is more in this book then the aforementioned. Overall, the author has done an excellent job breaking down how to think like Sherlock Holmes. In addition she has also listed some excellent follow-up reference materials I look forward to checking out.

    I categorize this book as a kind of self-help book and as such one can learn a lot from it with self-reflection. I know I have. 5 stars. I look forward to reading her other 2 works.
  • Akhil Murali
    5.0 out of 5 stars Talks about every aspects of Sherlocks Brain
    Reviewed in India on November 30, 2022
    Really liked this book, explained everything in detail. Their is no need for any other book to understand sherlock's brain and mind.
    You need the patience to read it and understand it.
  • Sheila Kaur
    3.0 out of 5 stars Fun read, not groundbreaking
    Reviewed in Singapore on September 15, 2024
    Language was not well used but it's a fun read for an afternoon.
  • Seneca
    2.0 out of 5 stars Flojo
    Reviewed in Spain on January 19, 2017
    Básicamente no da ningún consejo sobre como poder cumplir los objetivos que plantea, y parece darle demasiado crédito a un personaje ficticio. Se basa únicamente en asegurar constantemente como actuaría cada personaje en situaciones hipotéticas y en analizar porqué actúan como lo hacen, sin tener en cuenta que el motivo real es: Porque son personajes de novelas.
  • Stephan Powell
    5.0 out of 5 stars A thought provoking book
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 21, 2015
    I'm a huge Sherlock Holmes fan and very interested in psychology. This book has one idea of using a fictional character to make it's point and does it very well. I am not sure if it would be as enjoyable for non Sherlock fans but it was for me. I need to now find my old copy of Holmes stories!